(CNN) - Longtime Sen. Max Baucus, D-Montana, will not seek re-election next year, he said in a statement Tuesday.

"After much consideration and many conversations with my wife Mel and our family, I have decided not to seek reelection in 2014. I will serve out my term, and then it will be time to go home to Montana," he said.
During the remainder of term, Baucus pledged to fight the nation's fiscal issues and work for highway and farm bill that will support jobs in his state.

"I want to focus the next year and a half on serving Montana unconstrained by the demands of a campaign," he said. "Then, I want to come home and spend time with Mel, my son Zeno, and our family enjoying the Montana public lands we've fought hard to keep open and untarnished."

Meanwhile, former Democratic Gov. Brian Schweitzer is leaning towards running, said multiples Democrats with knowledge of Schweitzer's thinking. The officials asked to remain anonymous to speak more freely.

Baucus, now in his sixth term, becomes the sixth Democrat overall to retire from the Senate after his term is up. He's the third from a red state to not seek re-election. Sen. Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia and Sen. Tim Johnson of South Dakota both made their announcements earlier this year.

Three others from less conservative states are Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa, Sen. Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey, and Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan.

The Democrats control the Senate 55-45 (with two independents caucusing with the party), but as of now they are defending 21 of the 35 seats up for grabs in November 2014.

Meanwhile, two Republicans in the upper chamber will not seek re-election: Sen. Saxby Chambliss of Georgia and Sen. Mike Johanns of Nebraska.

A knowledgeable Democratic source said he made the decision because of several factors: he's getting older, he is not that happy in the Senate these days, and he is relatively newly married and is actually happy in his personal life

He raised more than $1.5 million in the first three months this year and has almost $5 million in his campaign war chest, according to Federal Election Commission reports. He was expected to face a tough re-election bid next year.

In recent news, Baucus was one of the few Democrats who voted against a bipartisan compromise to expand the background check system to include private sales at gun shows and online.

Gun control advocates vowed to aggressively target Democrats up for re-election next year who voted down the background check proposal.

Progressive Change Campaign Committee co-founder Stephanie Taylor said she was happy to see the Democratic senator go.

"Good bye, Senator K Street. Max Baucus has a history of voting with corporate interests and not the interests of Montana voters," she said in a statement. "Montana will finally have a chance to have a senator with its best interests at heart, and we hope Brian Schweitzer jumps into the race immediately."

Separately, some senior Democrats say they are thrilled about the idea of Schweitzer potentially jumping into the race. One called it an "upgrade."

Another source said Schweitzer is being heavily recruited but is not yet 100% certain he'll make the Senate bid.

Before being elected to the Senate in 1978, Baucus served in the U.S. House for two terms and in the Montana House of Representatives for one year.

The senior senator from Montana serves as the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, a highly influential post in the Senate.

In 2008, he was elected by a wide margin, 73%-27%, over his Republican opponent, Bob Kelleher.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee sees the Baucus news as another sign that the Democrats will have hard time keeping control of the Senate next year.

"The 2014 electoral map is in free-fall for Democrats, who were already facing a daunting challenge," said NRSC Executive Director Rob Collins, in a statement.

Not surprisingly, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee sees it differently

"Democrats have had a great deal of electoral success in Montana over the last decade, and I am confident that will continue," said Sen. Michael Bennet, DSCC chairman, in a statement. "Democrats built an unprecedented ground game in Montana in 2012 when Senator Tester was reelected, and we will continue to invest all the resources necessary to hold this seat."

soundoff(57 Responses)

He voted against gun control. Hope he doesn't let the door hit him where the good lord split him on the way out!

It's pretty pathetic to leave office because your life is soooo good, while leaving behind legacy of suffering for your constituents. Hope he enjoys his happy life while the rest of us try to clean up his messes!

April 23, 2013 12:43 pm at 12:43 pm |

Fair is Fair

"In other words, the Republicans have very little chance of picking up this seat.

Even if they do, there will be very little practical difference, given Baucus' record."
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It's all about the numbers... committee leads, majorities. And the GOP will pick this seat up. Bank on it.

April 23, 2013 12:49 pm at 12:49 pm |

Donna

He was going to be thrown out anyways for his support of Obamacare, which he now calls a train wreck. Thanks for wrecking our healthcare system fool! Then cowardly running away. Obamacare will be taking a LOT of Democrats down in 2014. Take that to the bank.

April 23, 2013 12:52 pm at 12:52 pm |

Norma Vessels

One less Blue Dog Democrat to worry about.

April 23, 2013 12:57 pm at 12:57 pm |

BZNMT

How many of the people commenting on here know absolutely anything about Montana? What legacy of suffering does Baucus leave Montanans, Darrell? He's not the most popular guy since the ACA passed, but prior to that he consistently had the highest approval ratings of any elected official in the state. He voted against gun control because Montanans aren't in favor of gun control.

As for Fair is Fair, no, the GOP won't pick this seat up. The only people running now are a total wing-nut (Stapleton) and someone else that I've never even heard of (which is saying something, because I'm politically involved in Montana). Schweitzer will likely run, is the feeling I got when I was in a discussion with him last week; and Brian is enormously popular in Montana.